POPULATION UPDATES. Commission on Population and Development-Northern Mindanao (PopCom-10) Assistant Director Richmond Charles Gajudo (left), and Technical Section Head Jeremias Cabasan present updates on the region's population situation during a media forum in Cagayan de Oro City on Wednesday (Feb. 22, 2023). PopCom records show that the region registered its lowest birth rates in three decades during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. (PNA photo by Nef Luczon)
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Live births in Northern Mindanao or Region 10 have dropped during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, the Commission on Population and Development (PopCom) bared Wednesday.
During a media forum here, PopCom-10 Assistant Director Richmond Charles Gajudo said the figures in 2020 and 2021 are the lowest in the past three decades based on the consolidated data from the Philippine Statistic Authority (PSA).
The PSA data indicated that from 2020 and 2021, the average birth rate was 82,000; while between 2010 and 2019, birth rates were around 84,000 to 93,000 in the region.
"During the (height of) the pandemic, couples must have realized that it would be hard to have a newborn child," Gajudo said.
He also said that during the peak of the pandemic, hospitals and other healthcare facilities were full of Covid-19 patients, which posed a challenge for those giving birth.
Gajudo also credited the decreased childbirths to PopCom's fourth quarter activities to intensified outreach programs in the communities nationwide, where there was a high acceptance rate of implant contraceptives.
Young parents
Based on the latest PSA demographic health survey, the national figure on teenage pregnancy has declined from 8.6 percent in 2017 to 5.4 percent in 2022.
However, compared to other regions, Region 10 has the highest percentage of pregnant adolescents aged 15 to 19.
The region has a 42 percent share in the Philippine total of female teens giving births which translates to 30 adolescents giving births daily, or 44 out of 1,000 young mothers.
Bukidnon province has the highest number of cases of adolescent mothers, which Gajudo said is mainly attributed to the cultural traditions of indigenous peoples.
But the youngest mother was recorded in this city, who was 11 years old in 2020.
Gajudo said PopCom promotes awareness on new laws that prevent female children from getting pregnant, one of which is Republic Act (R.A.) 11596, which bans child marriages.
The other is R.A. 11648, which increases the age of sexual consent from 12 years old to 16 years old. (PNA)
